The Rancher and His Unexpected Daughter Read Free Page B

Jenny out of control, it appeared her hormones were, as well. It was a dismaying turn of events.
    It also served as a warning that she’d better be on her guard around Harlan Adams. It wouldn’t do to spend much time around him with her defenses down. He was the kind of man who’d claim what he wanted, just as his ancestors had. Whether it was land or a woman probably wouldn’t matter much.
    She adopted her most businesslike demeanor, the one she reserved for clients and the courtroom. “What time do you want her at White Pines?” she inquired briskly, prepared to temporarily sacrifice her emotional peace of mind for her daughter’s sake.
    â€œDawn will do,” he said as he rose and headed for the door.
    He must have heard her faint gasp of dismay because he turned back and winked. “I’ll have the coffee ready when you get there.”
    Janet sighed as he walked away. Dawn! If he expected her to be coherent at that hour, he’d better have gallons of it and it had best be strong and black.

Chapter Two
    â€œI ’ve taken on another hand for the summer,” Harlan mentioned to Cody when he stopped by just before dinner later that night.
    His son sat up a little straighter in the leather chair in which he’d sprawled out of habit as soon as he’d walked through the door. Instantly Harlan could see Cody’s jaw setting stubbornly as he prepared to argue against his father’s unilateral decision. Harlan decided he’d best cut him off at the pass.
    â€œDon’t go getting your drawers in a knot,” he advised him. “I’m not usurping your authority. This was just something that came up.”
    â€œCame up how?” Cody asked, suspicion written all over his face. “There’s no budget for another hand. You told me that yourself when we talked about it just last week.”
    â€œIt came up right after my truck was stolen and smashed up,” Harlan explained. “Let’s just say that no money will be changing hands. The thief will be working off the repair bill.”
    Cody’s jaw dropped. “You hired the thief who stole your car? Haven’t you ever heard of jail time? If any of us had stolen a car and gone joyriding, you’d have helped the sheriff turn the lock on the cell.”
    â€œIt didn’t seem like the thing to do with a thirteen-year-old girl,” Harlan said mildly. “Seemed to me this was a better way to teach her a lesson.”
    Cody fell silent, clearly chewing over the concept of a teenage girl as his newest ranch hand. “What the hell am I supposed to have her doing?” he asked finally.
    â€œYou’re not her boss,” Harlan said, amused by the relief that instantly spread across Cody’s face. “I am. I just wanted you to know she’d be around. Her name’s Jenny Runningbear.”
    â€œRunningbear? Is her mother…?”
    â€œThe new lawyer in town,” Harlan supplied, watching as curiosity rose in Cody’s eyes.
    â€œDid you meet her?” Cody asked.
    â€œI did.” He decided then and there that he’d better be stingy with information about that meeting. His son had the look of a man about to make a romantic mountain out of a platonic molehill.
    â€œAnd?”
    â€œAnd, what?”
    â€œWhat did you think of her?”
    â€œShe seemed nice,” Harlan offered blandly, even as he conjured up some fairly steamy images of the raven-haired beauty who’d struck him as a fascinating blend of strength and vulnerability. Nice was far too tame a description for that delicate, exotic face, those long, long legs, and eyes so dark a man could lose himself in them.
    â€œReally?” Cody said, skepticism written all over his face. “Nice?”
    Harlan didn’t like the way Cody was studying him. “That’s what I said, isn’t it?” he replied irritably.
    â€œJust seemed sort of namby-pamby to